585 Akashvani FM stations and 388 Private FM radio stations operational- MIB to LS

The Government has said that at present, 585 Akashvani FM stations and 388 Private FM radio stations are operational in the country. Minister of State for Information and Broadcasting Dr L Murugan said this in a written reply to a question in Lok Sabha today. He said, last year in August, the government had approved the e-auction of 730 Private FM channels in 234 new uncovered cities including three channels in Jammu and Kashmir. He said, the annual license fees for FM channels in 234 new uncovered cities will be charged at four per cent of Gross Revenue. The Minister informed that the fee for North East states and Jammu and Kashmir will be charged two per cent of Gross Revenue, for an initial period of three years from the date of operationalization of the channel.